Iran captures 30 al-Qaeda operatives across nation

A senior Iranian intelligence official has announced the capture of 30 operatives tied to al-Qaeda-linked terrorist groups across Iran over the past month by the nation’s security forces.

The Saturday remarks were made by Iran’s Deputy Minister of Intelligence Ali Khazei who added, “The Intelligence Ministry carries out very good and effective measures to counter elements [seeking] to undermine security in the country.”He further noted that following the September 11, 2011 attacks, the Intelligence Ministry has been constantly involved in issues related to al-Qaeda terrorists in Iran as the group is making every effort to trigger insecurity in the country.Khazaei said terrorist groups have failed to achieve their goals given major efforts made by Iran’s Intelligence Ministry.He further added that terrorist groups and the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) Takfiri militants are committing crimes in Muslim countries, including Iraq, with the support of the Israeli regime and the US.Takfiri groups and ISIL are not enemies only to Shia Muslims as they have spelled out their hostility to Sunni Muslims as well, the official said, noting that recent ISIL atrocities in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul serve as a clear evidence of their indiscriminate killing.On June 10, the foreign-sponsored took control of Nineveh Province, including its capital Mosul, in a lightning advance, forcing “over 500,000 people in and around the city” to flee, according to Geneva-based International Organization for Migration (IOM).During the past week, the so-called ISIL has continued its raids southward and has captured some other areas, including the capital of Salah al-Din Province, Tikrit, where according to the IOM nearly 40,000 people have been displaced.